Frost dates Texas Austin

Frost dates in Austin, Texas

Last spring frost Mar 10 First fall frost Nov 17 NOAA 1991-2020

The average last spring frost in Austin is Mar 10 and the average first fall frost is Nov 17, measured at AUSTIN 6S, about 3 miles from the city centre. Below: how sure those dates are, and what to start, sow and set out each week.

Average last spring frostMar 1032°F, 50% probability
Average first fall frostNov 1732°F, 50% probability
Days between them252average frost-free season
How sure is that date? NOAA probability levels for a 32°F freeze
ProbabilityFreeze still comes after (spring)First freeze has come by (fall)
90%Feb 20Dec 6
50%Mar 10Nov 17
10%Mar 31Nov 1

Read it like this: in half of years the last 32°F freeze of spring comes after Mar 10, and in 1 year in 10 there is still a freeze after Mar 31. In 1 year in 10 the first fall freeze arrives before Nov 1.

Measured at: AUSTIN 6S, TX (NOAA station USC00410431), about 3 miles away at 570 ft, 14 years of record in 1991-2020.

Other stations nearby, for comparison:

  • AUSTIN-CAMP MABRY, TX (NOAA station USW00013958), about 4 miles away at 670 ft, 30 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Feb 20, first fall frost Dec 3
  • AUSTIN BERGSTROM AP, TX (NOAA station USW00013904), about 7 miles away at 480 ft, 24 years of record in 1991-2020: last spring frost Mar 12, first fall frost Nov 16

Seed-starting schedule for Austin, TX

Counted from a last frost date of Mar 10 (the average: a freeze comes later than this in half of years).

  1. Week of Dec 214 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLeekDec 2 to Dec 16
    • Start seeds indoorsOnionDec 2 to Dec 16
  2. Week of Dec 913 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsParsleyDec 9 to Dec 16
  3. Week of Dec 1612 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCeleryDec 16 to Dec 30
    • Start seeds indoorsSpinachDec 16 to Dec 30
  4. Week of Dec 3010 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBroccoliDec 30 to Jan 13
    • Start seeds indoorsBrussels sproutDec 30 to Jan 13
    • Start seeds indoorsCabbageDec 30 to Jan 13
    • Start seeds indoorsKaleDec 30 to Jan 13
    • Start seeds indoorsKohlrabiDec 30 to Jan 13
  5. Week of Jan 69 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsLettuceJan 6 to Jan 13
  6. Week of Jan 138 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCauliflowerJan 13 to Jan 27
    • Start seeds indoorsEggplantJan 13 to Jan 27
    • Start seeds indoorsPepperJan 13 to Jan 27
    • Start seeds indoorsSwiss chardJan 13 to Jan 27
  7. Week of Jan 207 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsTomatoJan 20 to Feb 3
  8. Week of Jan 276 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsBasilJan 27 to Feb 10
    • Set transplants outSpinachJan 27 to Feb 17
  9. Week of Feb 104 weeks before last frost
    • Sow seed outdoorsRadishFeb 10 to Feb 24
    • Sow seed outdoorsSwiss chardfrom Feb 10
    • Sow seed outdoorsTurnipFeb 10 to Feb 24
    • Set transplants outBroccoliFeb 10 to Feb 24
    • Set transplants outBrussels sproutFeb 10 to Feb 24
    • Set transplants outCabbagefrom Feb 10
    • Set transplants outKalefrom Feb 10
    • Set transplants outKohlrabifrom Feb 10
    • Set transplants outLeekfrom Feb 10
    • Set transplants outLettuceFeb 10 to Feb 17
    • Set transplants outOnionfrom Feb 10
  10. Week of Feb 173 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsCucumberFeb 17 to Feb 24
    • Set transplants outParsleyFeb 17 to Feb 24
  11. Week of Feb 242 weeks before last frost
    • Start seeds indoorsMelonFeb 24 to Mar 3
    • Start seeds indoorsPumpkinFeb 24 to Mar 3
    • Start seeds indoorsSummer squashFeb 24 to Mar 3
    • Start seeds indoorsWinter squashFeb 24 to Mar 3
    • Start seeds indoorsZucchiniFeb 24 to Mar 3
    • Plant seed potatoes outdoorsPotatoFeb 24 to Mar 3
    • Set transplants outCauliflowerfrom Feb 24
    • Set transplants outSwiss chardfrom Feb 24
  12. Week of Mar 10Last frost week
    • Sow seed outdoorsBeanfrom Mar 10
    • Sow seed outdoorsParsnipfrom Mar 10
    • Set transplants outCeleryfrom Mar 10
  13. Week of Mar 171 week after last frost
    • Plant slips outdoorsSweet potatoMar 17 to Mar 24
    • Set transplants outCucumberMar 17 to Mar 24
    • Set transplants outTomatoMar 17 to Mar 24
  14. Week of Mar 242 weeks after last frost
    • Set transplants outBasilfrom Mar 24
    • Set transplants outEggplantMar 24 to Mar 31
    • Set transplants outMelonfrom Mar 24
    • Set transplants outPepperfrom Mar 24
    • Set transplants outPumpkinfrom Mar 24
    • Set transplants outSummer squashfrom Mar 24
    • Set transplants outWinter squashfrom Mar 24
    • Set transplants outZucchinifrom Mar 24

Not in the city centre? Look up your own ZIP code

More in Texas

Where the numbers come from

Sources and method

Frost dates. U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Annual/Seasonal Climate Normals (1991-2020), NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (Palecki, Durre, Applequist, Arguez and Lawrimore, 2021). These are 30-year station statistics for 1991 to 2020. "Frost" here means an air temperature of 32°F or lower at the station. We use 6,539 stations that have at least 10 years of record and a published date; 176 more are stations where a freeze is too rare for NOAA to date, and 180 are stations cold enough to have frost risk all year.

Probability level. The headline dates are NOAA's 50% level: in half of years the last spring freeze comes later than that date, and in half of years the first fall freeze comes earlier. The 10% and 90% levels are shown next to them. For tender plants, the 10% spring date is the safer one to plan from: a freeze follows it in only 1 year in 10.

Which station. Your ZIP code is matched to the nearest of those stations by straight-line distance from the ZIP code's centre point (GeoNames, geonames.org, CC BY 4.0; 40,979 ZIP codes in the 50 states and DC). Nearest is not always most alike: a station on a hill, in a valley or by the water can differ from your garden by a week or more. That is why the station's name, distance and elevation are shown with every result, along with two more stations nearby. NOAA makes the same point: the normals are limited between stations as distance grows horizontally and vertically.

Seed-starting offsets. Growing Vegetables: When to Plant Your Vegetable Garden, a fact sheet from University of New Hampshire Extension. It gives each crop's weeks from seed to transplant and when it is safe to set out or sow relative to the last frost. The method is theirs too: take the planting date and count back the seed-to-transplant weeks. Where the fact sheet gives a range of planting dates, the start-indoors dates count back from the earliest one. The figures used, as the fact sheet states them:

  • Basil: Seed to transplant 6-8 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Bean: Plant seed in garden after last frost.
  • Broccoli: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 2-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Brussels sprout: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 2-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Cabbage: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Cauliflower: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 2 weeks before last frost.
  • Celery: Seed to transplant 10-12 weeks; set out after last frost.
  • Cucumber: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 1-2 weeks after last frost.
  • Eggplant: Seed to transplant 8-10 weeks; set out 2-3 weeks after last frost.
  • Kale: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Kohlrabi: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Leek: Seed to transplant 8-10 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Lettuce: Seed to transplant 4-5 weeks; set out 3-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Melon: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Onion: Seed to transplant 8-10 weeks; set out 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Parsley: Seed to transplant 9-10 weeks; set out 2-3 weeks before last frost.
  • Parsnip: Plant seed in garden after last frost.
  • Pepper: Seed to transplant 8-10 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Potato: Plant seed potatoes in garden 1-2 weeks before last frost.
  • Pumpkin: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Radish: Plant seed in garden 2-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Spinach: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 3-6 weeks before last frost.
  • Summer squash: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Sweet potato: Plant slips in garden 1-2 weeks after last frost.
  • Swiss chard: Seed to transplant 4-6 weeks; set out 2 weeks before last frost; or plant seed in garden 4 weeks before last frost.
  • Tomato: Seed to transplant 6-8 weeks; set out 1-2 weeks after last frost.
  • Turnip: Plant seed in garden 2-4 weeks before last frost.
  • Winter squash: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.
  • Zucchini: Seed to transplant 3-4 weeks; set out 2 weeks after last frost.

Not on the calendar. The same fact sheet times these by soil temperature, not by frost date, so they get no date here:

  • Pea: as soon as the soil thaws.
  • Beet: when the soil warms to 45°F.
  • Carrot: when the soil warms to 60°F.
  • Corn: when the soil warms to 60°F.
  • Cucumber, pumpkin, summer squash, winter squash, zucchini: direct-sow when the soil warms to 70°F.

Rutabaga is left out: the fact sheet gives it New Hampshire calendar dates, not a frost offset.

The fact sheet was written for New Hampshire. The offsets are relative to the last frost, so they carry to other places with a spring frost, but where winters are mild many cool-season crops are grown in fall and winter instead. Your state's extension service has the local calendar. Dates are 30-year statistics, not a forecast: check the forecast before setting tender plants out.

← Frost dates in Texas

Free on iOS and Android

Turn the dates into a plan.

Gardned builds a planting plan for your own beds, matched to your climate and conditions.

Download on the App Store
Get it on Google Play